Affirmation Letter of the Week: "You are saving your own life..."

Written and read by Dear Black Woman Florence Noel, founder of Dear Black Women

Dear love,

I know you've never seen it before, but this is what it looks like to heal from the inside out. This is what it looks like to save your own life. You. Your own life. Right now.

Second by second. Minute by minute. Hour by hour. Day by day.

This is what it looks like.

People don't talk about their pain in this way. We're taught to gloss it over. Let it fester. Push it away. Repress it. Dress it up. Deflect it. But, here you are, marinating in it. Learning its textures, sharp edges and cliffs.

I applaud you. I marvel at you. There is no more sacred work than this.

There's nothing in the world that is stronger than you for you. Righter than you for you. Braver than you for you. More perfect for you than you. And here you are saving your own life.

Second by second. Minute by minute. Hour by hour. Day by day.

And it shows. It shows in how you wake up in the morning and endeavor each long day to put one wobbly foot in front of the other. How you breathe. How you sit with the truth. How you learn to rest. How you’re open to new ways as you travel this harsh terrain.

Approach shallow waters? You wade. Approach deep waters? You swim. Approach a mountain? You climb. Approach a dessert? You walk. Approach an altar? You kneel. Approach your limits? You pray. You rest. You write. You scream. You cry. You pray.

You are saving your own life.

Second by second. Minute by minute. Hour by hour. Day by day.

Thank you.